Closure of taxi ranks in the Western Cape

31 July 2000

The African National Congress in the Western Cape welcomes any decisive action to bring the transport war to an end. It is already late in the day and any action must be taken on an urgent basis because the safety of all the people is paramount.

The people in the affected communities have been traumatised, and action to resolve the violence must seek to minimise any further disruption to their lives. Adequate planning must therefore, occur to provide and safeguard alternative methods of transport, whether buses or trains.

The ANC is disturbed that it took a threat to remove the relevant powers from the provincial government to get them to actually use these powers to keep the community safe.

If this action is to be successful, it must be accompanied by committed work to sort out the underlying tensions, such as permits, in the transport industry. At the same time, Minister Steve Tshwete must ensure that the Scorpions investigate the violence with a view to further arrests and convictions of those who perpetrate the violence. The existing police, together with the additional troops from other Provinces must also be put under national command if urgency and effectiveness are to be achieved.

We also call on the affected communities to remain calm, to co-operate with the police, and we thank them for their patience and restraint so far, and regret any inconvenience they may experience while we try to resolve the violence.